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My earlier post about Pope Benedict XVI’s reinstatement of four excommunicated bishops was for informational purposes and in no way endorses either the tone or content of Rabbi Shlomo Riskin’s analyses. While I appreciate Riskin’s pain and frustration brought about by the Pope’s endorsement of Richard Williamson, an avowed Holocaust denier and rather loony conspiracy…

Is the Pope right? Is the Pope wrong? Could he be both? My comments to follow… IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 25, 2009 Upon learning of Pope Benedict XVI’s lifting the excommunication of Holocaust denier Bishop Richard Williamson, Rabbi Shlomo Riskin said “the Pope has muddied the waters of truth and compromised his own religion, specifically the…

The Rabbinic Council of America chastised one of America’s most prominent rabbis and long-time member, Rabbi Haskel Lookstein for his participation in this week’s inaugural festivities. Lookstein participated in a prayer service held at the Washington National Cathedral during which prayers were offered by clergy of many faiths. But it’s not even clear what he…

Pastor Rick Warren’s invocation, along with President Obama’s inaugural address about which I already wrote, set the stage for a new kind of public religion in this country. It is both more inclusive and simultaneously proud of particularity than anything we may have seen before. For starters, Rick Warren was introduced as Dr. Rick Warren,…

The comments on yesterday’s post about the deadly effects of Biblical literalism promted me to write the following response the interesting question raised there. For me, the whole point of the Akeidah (Binding of Isaac) story – found in Genesis 22, is that it is possible to combine the readiness to commit the act of…

Leilani and Dale Neuman stood by as their diabetic daughter slipped into sickness, then acute illness and finally death from diabetic ketoacidosis. As followers of an online faith community called Unleavened Bread Ministries, which rejects medicine, they did nothing as their little girl died of an entirely treatable condition. Tell me these people should not…

President Obama’s inaugural address moved me for many reasons, including how Jewish it was. There was no Hebrew (had to listen to Rick Warren for that), nothing about Israel, and no pleas on behalf of the Jewish people. There was nothing that was uniquely Jewish about it. It would have been odd if there had…

Three rabbis are slated to offer prayers at a January 21st National Cathedral service to be held as part of Barack Obama’s inauguration. Is this a good thing, or not? Is it more complicated for the Reform participant, Rabbi David Saperstein, whose movement has consistently argued for a solid wall of separation between church and…

Who is David and who is Goliath? That question, either overtly or by innuendo, underpins the endless debate about the war in Gaza. Everyone is busy explaining to whoever will listen how they are the “little guy” being tormented by a bellicose giant. The importance of this issue is clear in the remarks of one…

Bishop Gene Robinson, recently added to the list of inaugural prayer-sayers, has promised that he will neither bring nor read from the Bible when he addresses Sunday’s crowds at the Lincoln Memorial. His choice is as regrettable as his inclusion is worthy of celebration. Commenting on his choice to leave his Bible at home, Bishop…
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